I met Stevie Rees on a weekend run with Dwight Yoakam. I was struck, obviously, by his absurd musicianship, and his low-key ninja/buddha insightfulness revealed itself as I gained his trust via fried chicken. Sharing the stage was a joy, and he’s a freaking legend, which you’ll soon discover.

Amazing conversations are nourishing in so many ways, and the podcast’s helped me approach songwriting with fresh perspective. I put the one take videos on hold for a while because, after weeks of being graciously invited into people’s worlds, I realized some new lyrics were bullshit. I mean, nice poems, well constructed and all that, but out of synch with my current real estate in the universe. It can be a beautiful thing, selecting all, pressing delete and starting over, an invitation for honestly to take center stage.